Public input sought on central city plan

OSHKOSH - City leaders are seeking input from the public in an ongoing effort to improve the central city area.

Imagine Oshkosh, also known as the Central City Investment Strategy, is a collaborative effort among the city, the Oshkosh Chamber of Commerce, the Oshkosh Area Community Foundation and the Business Improvement District.

The goal is to develop a plan for public and private investments within the next 15 to 20 years in the central city area, City Manager Mark Rohloff said previously.

In order to do that, the city's Community Development Department will hold a visioning workshop to help get ideas about what people would like to see in the area, which is bounded by Broad Street on the east to the University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh campus and from Irving Avenue on the north side to Ninth Avenue on the south.

The public visioning workshop will be held from 7 to 8:30 p.m. Tuesday at the Oshkosh Convention Center, 2 N. Main St. Those who are unable to attend may participate on the city's website, www.ci.oshkosh.wi.us.

Funding for the study comes from a $50,000 grant from the Wisconsin Economic Development Corp., a $25,000 contribution from the Community Foundation, $10,000 from the chamber, $110,000 from the city's downtown tax incremental financing districts and $5,000 from the Business Improvement District.

In addition to Tuesday's public visioning workshop, the study will include a series of questionnaires, focus groups and interviews to solicit ideas and feedback, Rohloff said. Among the potential areas of discussion are highlighting local history, capitalizing on various nightlife activities, attracting more visitors to downtown and looking for more residential opportunities in the central city area.

Reach Nathaniel Shuda at 920-426-6632 or nshuda@thenorthwestern.com; on Twitter: @onwnshuda.